International Giant Otter Studbook Husbandry and Management
International Giant Otter Studbook Husbandry and Management
International Giant Otter Studbook Husbandry and Management
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Their remaining foot parts were healthy, natural, <strong>and</strong> brown in appearance. Although, 3 to 4<br />
years before, these otters were housed in enclosures where the majority of the enclosure<br />
l<strong>and</strong>/floor area or all of it was hard surfaces <strong>and</strong> in some cases the l<strong>and</strong> area was also<br />
insufficient because of inappropriate l<strong>and</strong> to water ratios. They lived in the aforementioned<br />
circumstances for most of their lives. See the foot recovery history of these individuals in the<br />
paragraph below. Foot condition studies will be continued at Dortmund. It is highly<br />
recommended that other institutions carry out similar studies.<br />
One recovered otter, at the time of Groenendijk’s observation, had been housed in an<br />
enclosure nearly entirely covered with soft substrates (mostly s<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> the remaining<br />
mulch) for only the past 2 months of his life. He, at that time, was housed with the otter<br />
transferred from Brasilia Zoo <strong>and</strong> was in the process of recovering from unhealthy foot<br />
condition. After the third month of his recovery, all of his toe <strong>and</strong> foot pads became offwhite/light<br />
pink in color <strong>and</strong> the webbing <strong>and</strong> skin on his feet appeared healthy <strong>and</strong> brown<br />
in color. This otter was previously housed on entirely concrete surfaces for the last 7 years<br />
(including insufficient l<strong>and</strong> area) <strong>and</strong> was housed in an enclosure where the greater portion of<br />
the enclosure was covered with soft substrates for 4 years before this.<br />
Of the otters (3 in total) that were kept for several or more years at Dortmund, their foot<br />
condition was in significantly worse condition than before recovery (Gatz pers. comm.). Before<br />
these otters recovered they all showed varying degrees of unhealthy foot condition, from<br />
moderately unhealthy to very unhealthy (esp. when the addition of wet/damp conditions<br />
aggravated the situation). The simple change of covering nearly the entire enclosure l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />
floor area, which the majority or all was hard <strong>and</strong> smooth, with mulch or soft s<strong>and</strong> was the only<br />
method used/needed to help the foot condition of these otters to recover. The recommended<br />
substrate depths & types were provided. The l<strong>and</strong> to water ratios had always been appropriate<br />
in 2 of their 3 enclosures, <strong>and</strong> the 3 rd enclosure with insufficient l<strong>and</strong> area because of<br />
inappropriate ratios, was corrected. I.e. one pool was emptied <strong>and</strong> permanently filled with deep<br />
mulch to create an appropriate ratio. When enclosure substrates become very damp or wet for<br />
even short periods (i.e. days) or esp. during extended periods (e.g. during rainy periods or very<br />
humid weather), their pads can become pink at least temporarily. The foot <strong>and</strong> toe pads of the<br />
otter with completely healthy feet who is housed at the same zoo, remained totally brown during<br />
these periods. I.e. this otters’ feet remained healthy during these times.<br />
It is also interesting to note that the foot condition of the otter, previously discussed, reached full<br />
recovery in only 3 months after being housed on an enclosure nearly entirely covered with soft<br />
substrates as recommended. This otter was the only otter of the four aforementioned otters (all<br />
of whom had long-term exposure to hard surfaces) that recovered so quickly. With the other<br />
three otters, soft substrates were increasingly added, over the course of 1 to 2 years, until the<br />
point where nearly all of the enclosure floor/l<strong>and</strong> area was covered with soft surfaces. During<br />
this time, these three otters underwent a slow, but very significant recovery. They did not have<br />
off-white/light pink pads until nearly the entire surface was covered. No medical treatment was<br />
administered to any of the recovered animals for their foot problems. Only the enclosure<br />
conditions mentioned were changed. It is evident that full recovery can not be achieved <strong>and</strong><br />
recovery cannot be maintained until soft loose substrates <strong>and</strong> l<strong>and</strong> to water ratios are provided as<br />
recommended. It seems also that quicker recovery times can be achieved when nearly the entire<br />
or all of the area is soft, as opposed to slowly increasing soft substrate cover. It also may be that<br />
soft s<strong>and</strong> allows for quicker recovery than mulch. This is because the enclosure that the otter<br />
with the quickest recovery time was housed in during recovery contained/s a significantly<br />
greater ratio of s<strong>and</strong> to mulch compared to the enclosures in which the other three otters are<br />
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